Frances Walker, the granddaughter of a slave, was born in 1924 to Dr. George Walker and Rosa (King) Walker. Shortly after beginning piano studies at the age of 5, an accident with matches resulted in a lengthy hospitalization and extensive burns over her body. She suffered long-term damage to her right arm, but was not deterred from pursuing a career as a pianist. She earned a bachelor of music degree from Oberlin College in 1945. While she was teaching at Tougaloo College in Mississippi, she met her future husband Chet Slocum.  They relocated to  New York City, one of the few cities where interracial marriage was legal at the time, and Frances enrolled at Teachers College where she studied under Charles Walton. Her Carnegie Hall debut recital earned critical acclaim from The New York Times and launched a celebrated solo career focused on the works of black composers. In 1976 she was  invited to perform at Oberlin's Bicentennial Concert, and was asked to join the piano faculty where she became the first black woman to be granted tenure. There, she Chaired the piano department and was awarded the alumni medal in 2004.